The Spirit in White
by RikaFurude13
Summary: AU: Tamaki's father and the host club are spending their summer break on Furukawa Island, an island owned by a friend of the Suohs, Akira Tsukimori. What secrets do their generous host hold, however? And what does this have to do with the beautiful and mysterious 'spirit in white? TamakixHaruhi, maybe TwinsxOC (even though I usually don't like that sort of thing...)
1. Chapter 1

AN: I really should get medical help... here I am, starting YET another story when there are others I should be concentrating on... ARGHHHH *flips table* Anywho, welcome to my first purely Ouran story (doing a crossover already! ;p). Well... sorta purely, anyway.

This is an AU story. This takes place the summer before canon OHSHC starts, so Hikaru and Kaoru have just finished their last year of middle school, Tamaki and Kyoya have just finished their first year of high school, and Mori and Honey are turning into seniors! Haruhi is not part of the host club, nor is she living with her father, or applying to get into Ouran... etc. Where is she, you ask? I don't know... *looks around suspiciously*

There are original characters in this story, but they are very important to the story. I mean, there HAS to be _someone_ who owns their own island, right? RIGHT?

I am not a review-begger and I never will be, but I will say this once: Please Review! They make me so happy :3

I hope you guys like this! It is the longest single chapter I have written for a story so far! Even excluding this abhorrently long author's note!

* * *

"This is so exciting!" Honey said happily, taking a large bite from his chocolate cake.

"Agreed," Mori seconded. Tamaki smiled, raising his lemonade glass.

"This, my friends, is the start of a great summer break!" he declared.

Tamaki, Tamaki's father, Kyoya, Hikaru, Kaoru, Honey and Mori were on a private boat, readily speeding towards a private island for the summer, owned by a friend of the Suoh family, Akira Tsukimori. Tamaki's father had gotten a letter from Tsukimori a few weeks earlier, inviting them all to his island to stay for the summer. Even if the host club hadn't wanted to go, Headmaster Suoh would have forced them to anyway; he kept babbling about how it was a great educational experience for them all to meet somebody of such high caliber.

"How much longer..." complained Hikaru, stirring his lemonade with his straw boredly.

"About ten more minutes, don't worry!" Yuzuru Suoh answered brightly. "Furukawa Island is a beautiful place, you'll see!"

"Oh, so you've been there before, Suoh-san?" asked Kyoya, absent-mindedly writing figures in his black ledger book.

"Only once. A few months before Katsu Tsukimori succumbed to liver cancer. His son's the head now. He's about your age, you guys should get along fine with him!"

Hikaru grumbled, "Jeez, you didn't mention _that_. Now we all have to be polite and friendly and gaaah."

"Oh, he's always been really nice."

* * *

"Hello, welcomed guests!" Akira Tsukimori stood at the top of the stairs to the parlour, looking down at the new arrivals. He was wearing a crisply pressed beige suit that screamed wealth at the top of its lungs, and he held a gilded cane adorned with jewels in his hands. His shoes were polished to perfection, and he wore two rings: the family ring on his right middle finger and an opal stone in a silver band on the ring finger of his left. His hair was platinum-blonde and his eyes were a deep blue. He was stunningly handsome. "Welcome to my... humble abode."

"Oh, great. It's one of _those _people. Ugh, I hate false modesty. It's so narcissistic," Hikaru whispered under his breath as Akira descended the stairs. Yuzuru bowed, ignoring Hikaru's condescending remark.

"It's nice to see you again, Akira-sama. Thank you for letting us stay here."

"Of course," Akira answered. He walked up to them and bowed. "It is an honour to be in the presence of such people. Please, make yourselves at home. My butler, Aoi, can show you to your rooms." Akira gestured to a tall, middle-aged man dressed in a dark grey suit with salt-and-pepper hair. Aoi's expression was stern, but he gave a stiff bow and began walking, expecting the guests to follow him.

"Please forgive him, he's incredibly unsocial. Don't think much of it," remarked Akira with a smile.

"Uh, yeah, sure," said Kaoru as Kyoya led them after the silent butler. Akira watched them leave with a light smile on his face.

* * *

"Whoa, this room is so nice!" Honey said happily, looking around at the room that he insisted Mori share with him. Hikaru and Kaoru were staying in a room farther down the hall; Kyoya and Tamaki were next door to them, and Yuzuru Suoh was on the other side of the manor, closer to Akira's bedroom.

"Yes," Mori agreed, looking around the homey guest room. The curtains and bedsheets of the two medium-sized beds were maroon, and the light came from a rather ornate chandelier overhead that was a miniature copy of the larger one above the parlour.

"Akira-sama seems really nice, doesn't he?" Honey asked as he jumped onto the bed.

"Hmm," Mori thought. "He is hospitable."

"Hey, Takashi, do you think he'll let us go outside and explore?"

"Perhaps. We shouldn't be too much of a burden, so don't ask for too much, okay?"

"Okay, Takashi!"

* * *

"I _really_ don't like that guy," Hikaru complained. "I get the feeling he thinks he's better than us because he's already the head of his whole family _and _he has his own freaking island."

"Think about it, Hikaru," Kaoru tried to reason. "He probably had his own private tutors, the best in the world-"

Hikaru scoffed at Kaoru's words.

"-so he doesn't know how to interact with others his age! He just doesn't know the value of modesty! And it's up to us to help him."

"Are you kidding? There's no way I'm going to be nice to some guy who's even more stuck-up than we are."

Hikaru paused in his protest and looked around at the room.

"Though..." he continued. "He does have great taste in décor..."

* * *

"My dad's said so much about these people. To think, Akira-sama must have so much responsibility..." Tamaki said almost reverently.

"Hm, from what I've researched about them, the Tsukimoris are very prominent in the real-estate investment business," Kyoya said pedantically, pushing up his glasses. "Most of their fortune is amassed from that enterprise. However, it seems as though Akira-sama must be the only true member of the Tsukimori family left... I think most of the pressure he has to face would be marriage and carrying on the Tsukimori name."

"I guess so. Isn't this island beautiful? The house is, too."

"I admit, it is rather nice. The gardens are particularly enthralling, if you are into that sort of thing."

Tamaki's eyes lit up as he came up with an idea. "Oh! Maybe I can start up a business with Akira-sama! We can pay him for the flowers for the host club! Isn't it a great idea! I am good with business, after all." Tamaki posed grandly as Kyoya sighed.

"We are doing just fine with the imported flowers from Switzerland...," he tried to say, but Tamaki was too caught up in his big idea to notice.

* * *

"It's been a long time, Aoi-san. How have you been doing?" Yuzuru asked the stoic butler. Something flickered in Aoi's eyes, but Yuzuru either didn't notice, or didn't comment on it.

"Fine. The young master is particularly interesting to work for. He has engaged in a lot of changes."

"Has he?"

"Yes. The young master is going to issue orders sometime in the next fortnight to have the chapel removed from the island. He says that because he is the only one here, there is no need for a building to organize religion."

Yuzuru frowned. "That seems a little... but he's not the only one here! What about you and the rest of the servants?"

Aoi looked to the wall next to them, that indescribable look once again flashing in his eyes. "I'm not sure... he really notices. But it's not that big of an issue. Please enjoy your stay." Aoi turned on his heel and walked calmly down the corridor, leaving Yuzuru there, confused.

* * *

"Hey!" a brash voice echoed in Kaoru's ear. He and Hikaru turned to see a long-haired brunette standing a few metres away from them in the parlour. Her expression would have been intimidating, if it weren't for the French maid outfit she wore, which promptly caused both of the twins to double over laughing.

"Gosh!" Hikaru said in between peals of laughter. "Are you... really expected... to be scary... like _that_?" The maid scowled and marched up to him indignantly.

"Hey!" she repeated. "Who are you? And why are there two of you?"

Hikaru and Kaoru gasped as they regained their breath after their fit of laughter. "Hikaru... Hitachiin, and this is my twin brother, Kaoru."

"Misa Kitsune," the maid narrowed her eyes. "You two, stop making fun of me! What's so funny?"

"Oh, nothing," answered Kaoru. "It's just that you looked like you were trying to be scary but you're wearing an outdated, frilly maid outfit so..."

"Do you have something against my outfit?!" demanded Misa, and Hikaru was certain that she had no sense of humour by this point.

"No," Hikaru drug out the word as if he were speaking to a toddler (or Tamaki). "Geez, never mind. You don't take criticism very well, do you?"

Misa gasped, clearly offended. "My father owns a really good dojo, you know! And I have a taser!" she yelled, pulling a taser out of her frilly outfit. Hikaru's eyes widened and he took a step back.

"So don't mess with me!" Misa finished, clicking the taser to further emphasize her point.

"Okay, okay, wow, we don't need any of that!" Hikaru backtracked, holding his hands up in surrender. "I was just joking."

"Yeah, whatever," Misa pocketed her taser as a boy their age came through the parlour holding a tray of tea. He was a few centimetres shorter than Hikaru, with short, almost-messy black hair and a dull expression in his green eyes.

"Oh, hey, Satoshi!" Misa greeted with a smile, and Satoshi turned his gaze to her and gave her a small nod.

"What's up?" asked Kaoru. Satoshi merely stared at him with a blank look.

Before Kaoru could feel offended, Misa prodded him. "Don't bother. Satoshi's mute, and even if he could speak, he wouldn't have much of interest to say anyway."

Satoshi waited a moment longer before continuing on his way, to where Hikaru assumed Akira's room was.

"So, Misa," asked Hikaru conversationally, trying to make up for his apparently rude behaviour earlier. "If your father owns such a great dojo, then why are you working as a maid?"

"God! Why don't you just stuff me with candy and hang me from the chandelier!?" she yelled at him before taking off angrily.

Hikaru just stood there, taken aback by her response. "Goodness, these servants... they're rude! What the hell is wrong with her?" he asked indignantly.

Kaoru shrugged. "Maybe she just came for pocket money. Besides, we should learn a little more about her before asking questions like that. You did seem to have a pretty rude tone there..."

Hikaru frowned, staring at his twin. "What is wrong with you today? You're supposed to be on my side!"

Kaoru shrugged again. "Probably just spending too much time with Kaji at school."

"Who's that?"

"He's my science partner, remember? He's always talking about not judging people and looking deep into their personality, yada yada... I swear, he's going to be one awesome therapist."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. While you're busy lamenting about spending too much time with Haji-"

"Kaji," corrected Kaoru.

"Whatever. I'm going to look around the house some more. Feel free to join me."

"Nah," Kaoru said. "I think I'm going to see if any of the servants have started unpacking our things yet." He started going up the staircase.

"Keep Misa away from my crap!" Hikaru called after him.

* * *

Tamaki was looking at a portrait of the late Katsu Tsukimori. His son greatly resembled him, Tamaki noticed. Katsu smiled warmly out of the picture, making Tamaki smile also. There was something about the man... even in a painting, he exuded charisma and charm.

Tamaki looked at the table nearby the painting. It was bare save for a telephone and a book, lying open. Tamaki walked over to it and picked the book up, looking at the pages that were open. To Tamaki's delight, the book was in French, a nice treat for the teenager who had not read a book in French for several years.

_The spirit in white was responsible for the beauty of the nature of the island. The foliage breathed with her, the sun shone for her, the rain washed away her mortal impurities and made her into an ethereal being of purity and love. But when the nature began to suffer, the spirit began to grow very sick, fading from existence until all that was left was the shadow of her form... the White Ghost... who was very vengeful, indeed. The inhabitants of the island began being sacrificed to appease the gho-_

"I see you've found my book, Tamaki-sama," a kind, elderly voice caused Tamaki to jump and snap the tome shut. He turned around to see a kindly old woman who reminded him of Shima, but nicer.

"Oh, I didn't know this was your book, I'm sorry..." Tamaki said quickly, earning a kind-hearted chuckle from the woman.

"It's fine, Tamaki-sama. You may borrow it if you want. I have read it so much that I have nearly memorized it."

Tamaki smiled and looked down at the cover of the worn book: _Tales of the Island_. He caressed the edges carefully. "It certainly seems like a wonderful book."

"It is, Tamaki-sama. I used to read it to the young master and his cousins to help them sleep."

"Which is your favourite tale?"

"The one you were reading, Tamaki-sama. The tale of the spirit in white."

Tamaki frowned. "She didn't really begin to kill people, right? It said she was a lovable spirit... could the destruction of her home really make her so angry?"

The woman chuckled again. "It is just a story, Tamaki-sama. But... I think you are right. The power of love is more powerful than hatred, you know. Perhaps someday you may be able to rewrite it."

Tamaki smiled at the compliment. "What is your name?"

"I am Aiko Furude. The cook, normally, but I also attend to the garden. I have been here for a long time, I've seen the young master grow up into the fine man he is today."

"So, I'm guessing you were here when Katsu-sama was alive too? My father talked about him so much when I was little."

"He was truly an honourable man."

"I would imagine so," Tamaki agreed, looking behind him at the portrait again.

Aiko smiled. "Well, Tamaki-sama, it was a pleasure talking to you, but I must return to my duties. Do read the book, it is a very good collection, I hope you enjoy it." She gave her grandmotherly smile and walked through the doorway into the kitchen.

Tamaki smiled. So that was what a grandmother must be like...

* * *

"Isn't this fun, Takashi?" Honey asked as he looked around at the foliage in interest.

"Yes, but be careful, Mitsukuni," Mori cautioned, watching carefully to make sure Honey didn't trip over a root or a rock or something.

They originally went out, after asking Akira if they could go outside, following the path that led them around the manor and past the rose gardens. But then Honey found this boring and began to stray away from the cobbled path, into the woods, despite Mori's short attempts at protest. Mori gave up, knowing that Honey probably wouldn't get lost or hurt in the woods anyway; he spend enough time in them when they visited Kyoya's resort and the beach, anyway.

"I wonder if we'll find treasure!" Honey smiled at the thought as he voiced it, peering in the brush as they went, as if a magical treasure chest would appear in the dark green fern fronds and creepers.

They trudged onward for about ten more minutes. Just when Mori was about to suggest that they turn around and head back, Honey saw something in the distance. Going into overdrive, he grabbed Mori's hand and began to bound forward, his reflexes allowing him to not trip over anything.

"Look, Takashi! Look!" Honey exclaimed excitedly as they saw another, good-sized house in the distance. Ivy crept over the stone walls of the old-fashioned, western-styled house, giving it a beautiful, archaic look. A metal fence, rusted, with creepers climbing up all over it, surrounded a quaint little garden with a small, empty koifish pool and a wooden swing. A small cobblestone path, not unlike the one Honey and Mori had abandoned earlier, led through a spired doorway in the old fence and into the garden, up to the doorway of the house.

"Isn't it beautiful, Takashi?" Honey asked, stopped in front of the fence, gripping his younger cousin's hand.

"Yeah..." Mori answered. It was more than beautiful. It was the type of place that only existed in fairy tales, where fairies dwell and play harmless, mischievous games on travelers for their amusement.

"Do you think it's okay to explore it?" Honey asked. Mori looked down on his cousin, about to tell him that it wasn't a good idea, but when he saw the curious, questioning look on Honey's face, he couldn't decline so easily.

"If the gate is locked..." Mori compromised, "We'll look a little bit, but if it is, then we can assume that we are to stay out and turn back, okay?"

"Okay!" Honey agreed, happy with the compromise. He moved forward and touched the gate. The gate was strangely cold; Honey would have expected it to be at least a little warmer, being such a beautiful place, and the sun was out, after all. However, he paid little additional mind to it, and pushed forward, hoping that it would swing open.

It did, and Honey's smile grew happier. He and Mori stepped onto the path and ventured inside the garden. Honey had a feeling that he shouldn't really be there... but the gate was unlocked, and even so, if Akira hadn't wanted them in there, he would have mentioned it before they went out, wouldn't he? So Honey didn't know why he had such a foreboding feeling upon entering the quaint little paradise.

"Look at that birdbath, Takashi. The design is so cute!"

"Yeah."

Honey admired all of the flowers, and inquired why the pond was empty.

"Probably because nobody lives in this house anymore, Mitsukuni. So they cannot take care of koifish."

Honey shrugged and stepped onto the porch, and tried the door. It also opened with ease, and Honey stuck his head inside.

Although there were no candles or lightbulbs lit, the sunlight streaming in from the windows was enough to generously light the interior of the house, and it made Honey's breath catch. "Oh, goodness, Takashi, it's even nicer on the inside!" He stepped inside just as Mori was about to say that they go back. Sighing ever so slightly, Mori followed his curious cousin and inspected his surroundings. Honey was right, the interior of the house was decorated with a type of old-fashioned class, the drapes open to let the light in. Mori narrowed his eyes. No matter how beautiful the house was, it seemed as though it was lived in. But... that was impossible, right? The only residents on the island were Akira and the servants who lived in the main mansion.

Honey began exploring the rooms adjacent to the entryway, and Mori opted to not follow him in his sporadic exploration, instead deciding to stay in the main entry room, admiring the fabric on the couch and pondering the lived-in quality of the house. Heh... maybe fairies did live in it.

Honey looked at all of the rooms, laughing at the cuteness of the little cottage kitchen and staring in wonder at the tall bookshelves in the dusty library.

Honey ventured down a hallway. There were no windows illuminating in it, the only light being the residual sun seeping in from brighter rooms. Although the hallway was darker, Honey began to feel safer. He smiled, enjoying the almost-supernatural atmosphere of this particular section of the house.

He turned a corner, where it was brighter, looked into a smaller parlour, and he couldn't help but let out a barely audible gasp. All that was in the room was a cute little coffee-table, light streaming in through a window on the far wall. And by the window was a beautiful rocking-chair.

But that wasn't what made him gasp. Because, if it were even possible, there was something even more beautiful in the rocking-chair.

Feet fitted with small, laced-up white boots pushed at a steady tempo against the floor, causing the chair to rock, creating a little creak. A tea-length white skirt with mint-coloured lace swept from front to back with each slight movement. Dainty, moon-pale hands adorned with a single ring delicately held an old-looking book, creating an elegant line from the short, white sleeves down to the fingertips. A mint lace collar accentuated a pale neck adorning a silver cross, and a white-ribboned headband nestled just so in dark brown locks that were cut short to the nape of the neck. The creature was oblivious to Honey's presence, deep brown eyes concentrating on the tale before her.

Honey couldn't believe his eyes. He had never before seen something so beautiful. All of the girls he hosted at the club were very pretty, but there was something... otherworldly about this girl. He admired her for a few more moments, observing everything he could about the creature. Then, Honey moved back into the hallway as quietly as he could, to not disturb her. Once he was well out of the darker hallway, he ran back to the main entrance-room, rejoining Mori. Mori smiled and they left the house, then the garden, and they stayed silent until they reached the cobbled path back to the manor again.

"Takashi, you won't believe what I saw." Honey said.

"What was it, Mitsukuni?"

"I saw a fairy."

Mori smiled. The atmosphere reminded Honey of a fairy tale also, it seemed.

Honey continued. "She was so beautiful, sitting in the rocking-chair reading her book."

Mori blinked.

"She was smiling... but she seemed so sad. So lonely... Takashi, I want to visit her again sometime."

Mori frowned. "Fairies don't exist, Mitsukuni," he remarked in confusion.

Honey looked disappointed. "Yeah... you're right."

Mori patted his cousin's head comfortingly, thinking to himself.

Could it be... that what his cousin saw was a real thing? It would certainly confirm his suspicions that the house was lived in. Was there indeed somebody who lived in the quaint little cottage house on Furukawa Island?

* * *

AN: There you have it! I really like writing Misa... she seems so bipolar doesn't she? Harhar.

OH, and before I forget, I do not own Ouran High School Host Club or it's characters. I do, however, own Misa, Satoshi, Aiko, the excerpt from Aiko's book, and the Tsukimoris.

I hoped you liked it! I enjoyed writing it very much- such a fairytale atmosphere... :3


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Here is another installment! I hope you enjoy it!

* * *

"I am so glad you could all join me for tea. I usually have nobody to spend teatime with." Akira smiled as he took a sip of Earl Grey from the fancy china teacup he held delicately between perfect fingers. He seemed completely oblivious to Hikaru's burning glare of resentment; or, if he did notice, he did not comment or make any indication of knowing.

They were sitting in the parlour, the windows open to invite in the light. Akira sat with the others in a sort of semi-circle around him. Kyoya was paying close attention to Akira whilst simultaneously taking some kind of notes in his ledger, Kaoru was smiling nervously as if to apologize for his twin's hostility, and Tamaki was sipping tea and looking out the window, absently rubbing the edges of the pages of the book Aiko had let him borrow. Aoi was at his post a few metres away from the table, Misa and Aiko were in the kitchen and Satoshi was standing by to refill the teacups as needed. Yuzuru took a sip of tea cordially as he regarded Akira politely.

"Of course," said Yuzuru calmly. "What kind of guests would we be if we didn't join you?"

Akira chuckled, before looking at each of them in turn. "It seems as though two of your party are missing. They must still be out exploring."

"Oh, I knew somebody was missing!" remarked Kaoru. "How long ago did they go out?"

"About an hour."

Before anybody could say anything, Mori and Honey appeared at the entrance to the parlour. Mori had a pondering expression on his face, and Honey was smiling hugely as he bounded over. Satoshi wordlessly fixed him a cup of tea and Honey took it thankfully, giving a nod to the black-haired boy.

"Did you have a nice time?" Akira asked. Hikaru narrowed his eyes. He noticed something strange about him... his voice was slightly tighter than usual, and he had an eagerness in his eyes that suggested that perhaps Honey's answer was more important to him than it should have been.

Honey nodded. "Yeah-huh! All of the forest is so pretty!"

"Did you stay on the path?" Akira inquired further, making Hikaru even more suspicious.

Honey frowned. "Were we supposed to?"

Akira gave a light laugh. "Of course not, I just would hate for you to get lost, that is all. But you are here now, and that's all that matters!"

Mori sat down, finally, next to Honey as Honey's face turned back into it's usual bright expression. "Ooh, Akira-sama, you'll never guess what we saw! A cute little house with a fairy in it! Well, Takashi and I saw the house, but only I saw the fairy!"

"Is that so?" Akira suddenly looked exponentially more interested, as well as Tamaki, whose fingers ceased their movement and whose eyes fixed onto Honey with curiosity shining in them.

"Why do you care? Still play with your princess fairy dolls?" asked Hikaru venomously, with a dark smirk. Yuzuru gasped, and turned to berate him, but Akira beat him to it.

Akira turned his attention to the older twin with that infuriating smile on his face. "My, you seem to be in a bad mood today."

"Hey, I'm just making an observation," grumbled Hikaru, glaring back.

Akira shrugged. He then made a gasp and stood up. "Oh, goodness, I just remembered. I forgot that I have to respond to a very important business associate of mine. I'm afraid I'm going to have to leave you all here."

"It's fine," Yuzuru said before anyone else could say anything that would make their host regret his decision to let them stay there.

Akira nodded and turned, saying something to Aoi in a low voice before ascending the stairs.

"Good riddance," Hikaru muttered.

Kaoru took a gulp of tea and smiled. "Goodness, Hikaru. It seems like you just want somebody to hate on this trip, huh?"

Hikaru closed his eyes and shrugged. "I guess so."

Yuzuru sighed in relief. "You really should be more polite to him. He's being incredibly generous, letting us stay here."

"Hey, I didn't _have_ to come. You practically forced me to come!"

"That may be true, but that does not excuse your treatment of Akira-san," Yuzuru chastised. Hikaru huffed and drunk his tea, deciding to ignore the Headmaster's lecture.

"So, Aoi-san. What did Akira-sama tell you before he left?" Kyoya asked, his attention directed towards the silent butler. Aoi stepped forward a few paces and his face twisted into something that resembled a smile.

"He just wanted me to warn you that it is dangerous to go off of the path," Aoi answered, looking at Honey, who frowned guiltily.

"There is no rule against it... but it is very easy to trip and fall or get stuck somewhere; or even worse: falling off the cliffs. Some of them are so concealed with vegetation that you don't notice that there is a cliff there until it's too late."

"Oh, okay!" Honey smiled again. "We'll keep that in mind for next time!"

Aoi nodded and stepped back to his post on the sidelines again.

"I don't get it," Hikaru said without preamble as soon as his friends entered the room. He had invited the rest of the host club to his bedroom after the strange little tea party, so he could talk to them without Tamaki's sensitive father or any of the servants hearing their conversation.

"What don't you get?" asked Kyoya, sitting in one of the chairs in the room.

"Why would he keep his voice hushed to Aoi-san earlier? It wasn't like he was telling him a secret. If Akira-san was just going to tell Aoi-san to tell us about the dangers of the forest, why keep his voice down in the first place?"

"Maybe he was self-conscious," Kaoru reasoned and Hikaru glared at him.

"Shut up until you turn back to normal, Haji-boy."

"It's _Kaji-_oh, never mind." Kaoru sulked.

"I don't think you should dwell too much on it, Hikaru, anyway," Kyoya said. "What business of ours is it if Akira-sama wants to talk quietly to his own butler?"

"Oh, _come on_, Kyoya! At least tell me you're a little bit curious! He got all jumpy when Honey said he wasn't on the path. There has to be something he's hiding!"

Kyoya sighed, pushing up his glasses. "I admit, there are a few things I would like to know about our Tsukimori friend here, but it's not because he was asking where Honey-sempai and Mori-sempai went."

"What about you, Boss? You've been silent all night," Hikaru tried to get Tamaki on his side, but Tamaki was engrossed in the book.

"You've been reading that book all day, Boss," Kaoru observed, getting up to look over Tamaki's shoulder. "Gaah, it's in French."

Tamaki looked up, jumped and shrieked in surprise as he saw Kaoru's face centimetres away from his own. Tamaki's jump caused his blond head to collide with Kaoru's nose.

"Ow, Boss, jeez!" Kaoru rubbed his nose and Tamaki frowned.

"I'm so sorry, Kaoru! I didn't see you there!" He apologized profusely and could only be silenced with Hikaru walking over and hitting him in the head. Tamaki shut up and pouted.

"What is that book?" Kaoru asked. Tamaki immediately brightened up.

"Aiko-chama, the cook, let me borrow it! It's a compilation of legends from different islands all over the world! The one I'm reading is the one about a spirit that protects the nature of an island, but once people started abusing the land, she turned vengeful and started to kill people."

The others in the room sweat-dropped. "Well... I'm glad you're enjoying it...," Hikaru said.

"What Honey was talking about really interested me earlier! Did you really see a fairy! Maybe it's the White Ghost! The ghost of the spirit in white from my book!"

Hikaru rolled his eyes. "Oh, come on Boss. You can't be serious. This probably isn't even the same island. And spirits, fairies and ghosts don't even exist anyway."

Honey frowned. "But I _did _see her! She was really pretty! And she was in all white, reading a book in a rocking-chair."

Hikaru was about to protest but Kaoru shut him up with a pointed look. "Of course, Honey. What else did you notice about her!"

"The spirit in white wore all white too!" Tamaki interjected in a sing-song voice. Honey smiled excitedly.

"Well, she wore white boots and a little headband in her hair. She had on a pretty necklace and a ring, and she seemed sad and lonely so I want to go back sometime so I can be her friend and she won't seem so sad anymore!"

"Sounds like the spirit in whi-" Hikaru hit Tamaki over the head again, interrupting him.

"Shut up about that spirit thing already, Boss! Even if somebody did live somewhere else on this island, it certainly wouldn't be anything supernatural!"

Tamaki looked like he was going to go try growing assorted fungus from the walls, but suddenly he stood up in his 'I-have-a-mission-for-you' pose.

"Fine! We shall see who will win out in this fight! Tomorrow, we will go out and find this fairy Honey-sempai saw!"

Kyoya frowned. "Shouldn't we spend time with Akira-san instead?"

"Ugh, no! I am on Boss' side for this one. I'm eager to prove that there are no supernatural things on this islands to this bumbling idiot!" Hikaru protested.

"Yeah, Kyoya-sempai, come on. Don't be a stick in the mud. This is more interesting than talking business with that guy anyway, besides Tamaki-sempai's dad will probably be talking with him all day, so we won't need to be there. Come on!" Kaoru added.

Kyoya sighed. "I suppose a few hours tomorrow won't be too much of a waste."

"Yay!" Honey squealed excitedly as he grabbed Mori's arm. "Tomorrow you can see the fairy too, Takashi!"

"Yeah."

"Then it's settled!" Tamaki declared. "Tomorrow, we go fairy-hunting!"

* * *

The sound of pristine, polished shoes hitting the wooden floorboards echoed through the house. Akira opened the door to the small study near the library, after venturing through the hall that was significantly darker now than it was during the day. The person inside the room stiffened minutely, but did not look up from the book, hoping that Akira wasn't in a bad mood during this particular visit.

Light breath hitched as Akira laid his hand on her white-sleeved shoulder.

"Haruhi-chan..." his sickeningly sweet voice crooned into her ear as she raised her sombre brown eyes to stare ahead in front of her, willing him to go away. "One of my guests say they saw you today... why is that?"

"I do not know, Tsukimori-sama," Haruhi responded in a monotone voice, willing herself not to betray how nervous she felt in his presence.

Haruhi couldn't help a little squeak as Akira tightened his grip on her small shoulder. "I told you to call me Akira, Haruhi-chan."

"Yes... sorry, Akira-sama."

He let her go, and she let out a silent breath she didn't even realize she had been holding. "That's better," he said as he sat down on the window seat so he could stare into the eyes he so ardently admired... like the colour of the rich wood constructing the cute little house he kept her in.

"I... didn't know anybody had come in," Haruhi continued. "I'm sorry if I accidentally let somebody see me in here."

Akira clicked his tongue in much the same way a parent would do to his child.

"You worry me, Haruhi-chan. You do realize that you being here keeps you safe, right? I do not want that safety to be jeopardized because you were careless and let somebody see you."

Haruhi gulped and looked down at her hands, still holding the novel she had been immersed in all day. "I'm sorry," she repeated.

Akira sighed. "I suppose no harm was done. It was the little lolita boy who saw you, after all, and nobody believed him because he said that you were a fairy. Thank goodness for his little active imagination, yes?" He chuckled, a light sound, but Haruhi knew not to trust it anymore.

"Nevertheless..." Akira's voice drifted off as he reached hand out and caressed Haruhi's cheek. "Although nothing came of it... this is still inexcusable, is it not? And you must learn... to not do it again, yes?" His voice was deceptively smooth and cordial, but Haruhi looked into his midnight-blue eyes and saw something akin to disappointment and anger.

"Yes... Akira-sama," Haruhi whispered, feeling fear bubble up in her; she knew what was going to happen.

Akira smiled at her. "Good, Haruhi-chan." He really didn't want to hurt her... he loved her more than anything else he had ever owned. But she was almost found out, and he couldn't stand for her to leave him. At least the pain would keep her here for _that much longer..._

* * *

_AN: _Sniff sniff... poor Haruhi! I'll leave it up to you all to decide what happened to Haruhi with Akira ^^ So you can all tailor it to whatever you feel should happen! Awww it makes me so sad... but hey, Haruhi, you get your own cute cottage house at least! *thumbs up!*

I hope you liked it!


	3. Chapter 3

"Are you sure you are going the right way?" Tamaki asked nervously as Honey and Mori led the group through the brush early the next day. The sun had just risen, and the air was crisp and cool, and they all wore light jackets because it was just cold enough to make them shiver in the morning breeze. Hikaru and Kaoru kept complaining because the dew on the leaves made their pant legs wet, and Tamaki found it difficult to keep up with his two sempais, who had already been here and moved much more quickly through the undergrowth than the others did.

"Yep! There's the tree with the face!" Honey pointed to a tree that did, indeed, look as if it had a face in it. Kaoru stepped backwards with a face.

"That's creepy."

Honey smiled and kept going, making sure to go slower because the others were beginning to breath more heavily.

"What do we do if we find something?" Kaoru asked. "I mean, if there really is a person living there... what if they're trapped here?"

"What if they're not?" countered Kyoya. "_If _somebody does exist elsewhere on this island, we should know the entire story before trying to take any action by ourselves."

Kaoru sighed. "I suppose. But what if it's that evil spirit Boss was talking about? Or what if we end up falling off of one of those cliffs Aoi-san warned us of?"

"You worry too much, brother," Hikaru scoffed. "Just enjoy the moment, and stop thinking about what-ifs that probably won't even happy."

"Yeah!" Honey agreed. "It's a beautiful day out! Let's enjoy it!"

"We can only afford to be out here for a few hours at most," Kyoya reminded them. "In case Akira-san wishes to talk about anything with us, we need to be sure we will be there if and when he summons us."

"Hey, I say let's stay out here for as long as we want to," Hikaru said bluntly. "If we can inconvenience that guy in any way, I'm up for it."

Kyoya smiled. "If you wish to."

"Eeeeh, I'm not sure if I want to stay out here all day..." Tamaki said, brushing leaves off the sleeve of his jacket quickly. "It's kind of messy out here. And bugs..."

"Oh, toughen up, Boss. No girl's gonna like a sissy boy," Hikaru remarked, slapping Tamaki on the back, causing Tamaki to pout slightly.

"I'm just worried that my clothes will be ruined...," he said glumly, looking down at his casual outfit that was already damp from the morning dew and rumpled from being caught on branches and bushes and Lord knew what else.

"You have more," Hikaru assured him and Kaoru snickered.

"Coming from the guy who was just grumbling about your clothes getting wet," he smirked and Hikaru punched his arm, not hard enough to hurt him.

"Hey, you were complaining just as much!" Hikaru retorted and Kaoru laughed.

"Here it is!" Honey suddenly cried, pointing through the brush to the tall iron gate surrounding the cottage-style house in the distance. The others gathered around him and Mori to stare at it.

"Hm, so there really is another house here," Kyoya said.

Honey nodded. "And there's a fairy in it!" he asserted.

"Sure there is...," Hikaru said sardonically, but he was too caught up in looking at the strange house to put any real sarcasm behind it.

"Let's go!" Honey bounded forward, and the others followed. Honey went up to the door to the gate and tried it, frowning when the gate door wouldn't budge.

"It's locked?" Hikaru asked. "Well, that seems fishy."

"It wasn't locked yesterday," Honey observed. "Somebody must have come here and locked it. Maybe it was the fairy!"

Hikaru rolled his eyes as Kaoru began going around the perimeter of the fence. "It was _obviously_ Akira-san. Who else? He found out that you came to the house yesterday, and he locked up the gate so that we couldn't get in again."

"Now, we don't have any proof that happened," Kyoya said, but judging by the look in his eyes, Hikaru knew that his sempai was interested in the development.

"Maybe we shouldn't go in..." Tamaki said. "If it's locked, it's obviously off-limits. We probably weren't allowed here in the first place."

"Why are you, of all people, trying to back out now?" Hikaru asked, turning on Tamaki. "You were the one who set up this little mission."

"I know, but it seems really dangerous out here... we probably shouldn't go in." Tamaki walked a few steps to the side, carefully, but not carefully enough. He tripped over something- a tree root, probably- and let out a cry as a piece of previously hidden rusted metal tore through his leg. He fell the the ground, holding his right calf as it began to bleed profusely. The others, sans Kaoru, rushed over to him in concern.

"What is that?" Hikaru asked as Mori tried to help Tamaki up. Honey gingerly found the offending metal object and carefully picked it up. It looked like one of the spires on the fence surround the little house, and, sure enough, when Honey looked back up to the fence, one of the many spires looked as if the top portion of it had broken off.

"Ow!" Tamaki protested as he tried putting weight on his bloodied leg.

"We need to clean off the wound," Hikaru said. "Can't you get tetanus or something from rusty metal?"

Tamaki's eyes widened in panic and Honey threw the broken spire towards the fence, patting Tamaki's arm in comfort.

"There's no way you're gonna be able to make it back to the main mansion with that leg. Unless Mori-sempai carries you or something," Hikaru said. Tamaki grimaced at the thought of having to be carried such a long distance.

"Even if Mori-sempai could do so," Kyoya added, "We need to wash off Tamaki's leg before it gets infected. And going through this vegetation could speed up the infection process."

"So, what?" Hikaru asked indignantly. "We can't get past the fence here at this house, so we can't go wash up there, now can we?"

"Don't speak so fast, brother," Kaoru called, coming around the fence corner again. "There's a hole in the fence over here, and it's just big enough for us to walk through, though Mori-sempai will probably have to bend down."

"Really?" Hikaru asked.

Kaoru nodded. "Come on, let's get Boss all fixed up." He smiled and led the group over. Tamaki was hopping on his left leg, leaning onto Mori for support. They slowly went through the gaping hole in the fence, emerging in the garden of the little house.

"Come on," said Honey, leading them inside the house. To their relief, the door to the house itself wasn't locked, and they got Tamaki inside and sitting down on one of the finely upholstered chairs in the sitting-room.

"Okay, Kyoya, go look for rags or a first-aid kit, and some string. Tamaki, roll up your pant leg. Hikaru, Kaoru, get water," Mori said in a commanding tone.

"What should I do, Takashi?" asked Honey with a huge grin on his face. Mori smiled.

"Mitsukuni, go see if you can find the fairy again," he decided. Honey nodded.

"Alright!" He ran off in the direction of the room he had seen her in the last time.

Kyoya came back with a handful of dishrags. "I couldn't find a first-aid kit," he said. "I suppose these could suffice well enough, though, for now."

Hikaru and Kaoru emerged from the kitchen with a medium-sized bowl of water. "This good enough?" they asked in unison. Mori nodded as he sat down next to Tamaki and began washing off his leg.

"Mori-sempai, I can do it just fine," Tamaki said between gritted teeth as Mori worked.

"No. The cut is too deep, you might miss something," Mori said as he finished cleaning and wrapped a clean rag around the wound so it would stop bleeding. Kyoya handed Mori the piece of yarn he found on the coffee table and Mori tied the rag around Tamaki's leg.

"Do not move yet, Tamaki-kun," Mori warned. "Wait for it it stop bleeding for a while."

Tamaki nodded. "Okay," he said, looking down at Mori's crude yet effective handiwork.

"I'm going to find Mitsukuni," he said as he straightened up and went off in the direction Honey had went.

"You don't mind if we leave you here alone, right, Boss?" Hikaru asked hopefully. Tamaki smiled and shook his head.

"Go ahead."

"Call us if you need anything," Kyoya said.

Hikaru and Kaoru went off in the opposite direction to look around, Kyoya following them so they wouldn't break anything.

Tamaki sighed and stared at the coffee table. His leg hurt like hell, but at least it looked like the bleeding was stopping now.

Tamaki then blinked, and leaned forward. Kyoya had gotten the yarn from a pile of yarn scraps on the coffee table... He looked at each of the chairs and noticed a shining green crochet hook on one of the cushions of the couch to his right.

"Why would there be a crochet hook here?" Tamaki asked to himself.

* * *

"Dang it, I wish we had eaten breakfast before we started out," Hikaru complained.

"Yeah, or packed a picnic brunch thing, at least," Kaoru added. They were in what looked like a study, with a door leading to a fairly good-sized library. Kyoya was currently in the library; he had said something about wanting to see what collection of books was available in the library, but Hikaru and Kaoru both knew that he just didn't want to hear them complaining about wanting food anymore.

"Hey, come check this out," Kaoru said, picking something up off of the little desk beside them. It was a small ring, with a silver band and a sky-blue opal stone set plainly in the centre.

"That looks kind of familiar," Hikaru mused as he looked closely at it.

"It should. Akira-san has the same one on his left hand."

Hikaru's eyes widened. "You're right... do you think he left it here? I mean, it's obvious he came here yesterday."

"I don't know... I wish I wouldn't have seen him this morning so I could see if he had his ring on or not."

"It's not like we would have known we were looking for it, anyway," said Hikaru logically as Kaoru put the ring back onto the table.

"Yeah," Kaoru agreed. "But I'll be looking for it when we see him later today."

* * *

"Aww, Takashi. She's not here," Honey said sadly when Mori found him staring into the room he had seen the girl in the previous day.

Mori laid a comforting hand on his shoulder. "Well, people usually don't stay in the same room always, right? Besides, it's still fairly early. Perhaps she is still asleep."

Honey smiled jovially. "So we just have to wait for her to wake up! Wait, do fairies even sleep?"

"I'm sure they do. Everything does."

Honey nodded, happy with his answer.

* * *

Tamaki breathed slowly as he got up carefully from the chair he was sitting in. His leg had stopped bleeding for almost ten minutes, and he was extremely bored. This was his idea! He shouldn't be sitting around while his friends were off looking around! Besides, he still had to prove that the spirit in white from his story was true. So, once he finally righted himself, he began walking slowly, but surely, holding onto the ornate chairs for support. He knew Hikaru, Kaoru and Kyoya had went to the right, and Honey and Mori had went to the left. He wondered if there was a backyard to this place, and if it was just as beautiful as the front...

Eager to be the first one to discover the backyard, he made his way to the kitchen, and towards the back door. It took him several minutes to make it over there without excessive pain, and he slowly opened the door. He gasped at what he saw.

The garden at the back of the house even more spectacular than the one in the front, and maybe even more than the one at the main house. Roses and lilacs of every possible natural shade filled the air with a honey-sweet scent. The porch was furnished with cream-coloured lawn furniture, complete with a little umbrella over a clean-swept glass table. A swing, not unlike the one on the front porch, took precedence to the right of the furniture. Closest to him was a light little couch; he could only see the back of it. Smaller, regular chairs were placed around the table in an arc.

It was all so neat and orderly, and even the glass table looked like it had been just wiped; it wasn't dirty in the slightest. Tamaki wondered if the general cleanliness of the area had anything to do with the discarded yarn, or the gleaming crochet hook in the sitting-room.

Tamaki's leg started to hurt more as he stood there, holding onto the doorway for support, so he decided to go outside, carefully making his way down the wooden stairs into the garden. He closed his eyes in pain as he grabbed for one of the chairs, almost directly opposite to the little couch, and sat down, letting out a sigh of relief and opening eyes.

And he couldn't believe what he saw.

"Oh my gosh..." he whispered as he stared at the couch with a girl, dressed all in white and pale green, slumbering upon it. Next to her on the couch was the same colour of yarn Kyoya had found, with a teal crochet hook resting neatly in what Tamaki saw to be something akin to a scarf, unfinished.

Honey was right. She did look like a fairy, that was for sure. Maybe it was the way the sunlight reflected off of her ethereal outfit, but it seemed as if she were almost glowing.

Tamaki leaned forward, seeing if everything matched Honey's description. She had white boots on, just like he said, and he saw the glimmering silver cross at her neck. He looked at her fingers, remembering that Honey said he had seen her wearing a ring, but he found none. Hm. Maybe Honey was mistaken?

That didn't matter. This was undoubtedly the same girl Honey had seen. She looked so tranquil, laying there in the morning sun, sleeping away. It made Tamaki smile. However, that smile soon melted away as he saw something on her cheek. A cheek that should have been unmarred... but it looked like it was bruised badly.

Before Tamaki could think any further about this revelation, however, the girl's eyes began to flutter open, as if she could sense that she was being watched. Tamaki looked from side to side, unsure of what he should do, as her brown eyes opened fully and she drew herself up, yawning. She arranged her crochet so it was out of the way before she noticed Tamaki sitting across from her.

Their eyes locked, violet to brown, and neither said anything. This kept happening for several moments until Tamaki broke the silence.

"Ah, hello. I'm sorry if I woke you up..." he apologized. She blinked, before her eyes looked down at his injured leg.

"You're hurt," she said bluntly, standing up and going inside. Tamaki frowned, wondering what she was doing. She reemerged with a small tin case, and walked over to him, kneeling down on the ground and opening the case. Tamaki saw that it was filled with bandages and ointments.

"Oh, you don't need to do that," he tried to say as she untied the yarn around the makeshift bandage and removed the rag, making Tamaki wince as the injury was exposed to the air.

"Yes, I do," the girl said as she rubbed ointment into the wound with small, pale fingers, causing Tamaki to clench his own as he tried to ignore the pain. "I'm sorry," she apologized, as she unrolled a bit of bandage and pinned it in place. "There." She closed the tin and placed it on the table, not getting up off of the ground as she looked up at Tamaki.

Tamaki smiled nervously, "My name is Tamaki Suoh... what's yours?"

The girl looked as though she was pondering whether to answer or not. Tamaki waited patiently, before he blurted out, "You're the spirit in white from that book, right?" He smiled excitedly, and the girl blinked in surprise. She remembered hearing that story before she went to bed at night... It was always her favourite story, and Aiko read it to her every time she visited, at least, when she was little.

"No... but I do like that story," the girl answered. "I'm Haruhi."

Tamaki smiled. "Do you have a last name, Haruhi-chan?"

Haruhi was surprised. He said her name the same way Akira-sama did... but it didn't chill her to her bones the same way it did when Akira-sama said it...

"Aye... I do have a last name, but it's not my own. It doesn't describe me," she answered, hoping that Tamaki wouldn't question that.

"Hm... so you don't like your last name, huh?" Tamaki asked. He thought she was quite a peculiar young girl; so what if she wasn't the spirit like he'd hoped? She had shown him hospitality, after all. "How about I give you one?"

Haruhi tilted her head questioningly as she stared up at Tamaki from her seat on the ground. "Like what?"

"Well," Tamaki said, tapping his long fingers against his chin in thought, "I once knew a great man. He was a commoner, but he was strong, and reminded me of myself. He liked Kyoya more than me for whatever reason, but I forgive him for putting chrysanthemum in the stew pot..."

Haruhi just kept staring at him, unsure of what exactly he was talking about.

"Anyway, when his wife died, my father paid for the funeral and although he shed many a tear, he was still strong and is making it even though he had to get a job at a tranny bar and everything."

"Where are you going with this?"

Tamaki smiled down at Haruhi. "He's the strongest man I know, and his wife was the strongest woman I knew. You seem pretty strong to be able to live here all by yourself, so I'll name you after them: Fujioka!"

Haruhi looked down in thought. "Haruhi... Fujioka?" It did have a ring to it, she admitted.

"So if you don't like your last name, you can be an honourary member of the Fujioka clan!" Tamaki finished triumphantly.

Haruhi smiled. "I like it." She stood up and sat in the chair next to him. "It's very nice, Suoh-sama."

Tamaki laughed. "Oh, don't be so prim and proper, Haruhi-chan, now that we're friends! Just call me Tamaki."

"Oh... okay... Tamaki-sama."

Tamaki sweatdropped and smiled nervously. "Well... we'll get there!"

* * *

AN: Awwww cute! Hope you liked!


	4. Chapter 4

AN: Hello, sorry for the wait! I hope you like it!

* * *

"Boss?" came a voice at the doorway, and Tamaki immediately looked away from Haruhi at Hikaru, who was staring dumbfoundedly at him and the girl sitting beside him.

"Oh,... hello," Hikaru said, looking at Haruhi, who seemed ready to bolt, afraid of what was unfamiliar to her. Tamaki placed a hand on her arm gently.

"It's okay, Haruhi-chan..." he said with a smile, trying to get Haruhi to relax.

Meanwhile, Haruhi's thoughts were swirling around in a frenzy. She had already let two people see her... and now there's a third one... Soon, she wouldn't be forgiven at all for willingly showing herself to strangers. She tensed as the redhead stepped forward, and Tamaki rubbed her arm before standing up, visibly clenching his teeth as he ignored the pain from his leg.

"Haruhi-chan," Tamaki said quietly, "This is my friend, Hikaru Hitachiin. He has a twin brother named Kaoru, so don't be alarmed if you see somebody who looks just like him. I also came here with Mitsukuni Haninozuka, who said he already saw you, Takashi Morinozuka, who was also here yesterday but _didn't_ see you, and my best friend, Kyoya Ohtori. He has glasses, so it's easy to figure out who he is. Mori-sempai is the tallest, and Honey-sempai is the shortest."

Haruhi blinked to herself, trying to take all of this new information. She moved her arm from under Tamaki's to count on her fingers.

"Six?" she said, halfway to herself. Akira-sama... he would be mad if six people knew about her...

"Yeah," Hikaru said, and Haruhi stared at him, trying to get used to his presence. She sort of jumped in and showed herself to Tamaki without realizing the full consequences, because he was hurt. But... now that she was confronted with somebody new, all of those realizations slammed into her like metal wrecking ball. She looked down at her hands, absently rubbing her left ring finger. What would Akira-sama do to her if... if he knew?

"Haruhi-chan?" Hikaru asked, and Haruhi was confused. He had so suddenly reverted into calling her with '-chan' also, it seemed. Hikaru moved forward so he was directly across from her and Tamaki, on the other side of the table. "Why are you here, and not at the main house?"

Haruhi began to internally panic at the blunt question. "Ummm..."

Tamaki saw her nervousness and came to her rescue. "You don't have to answer if you don't want to, Haruhi-chan."

"Ah... um, thank you, Tamaki-sama..." she tried to deepen her breathing and calm down, to think rationally.

Hikaru saw that she was skittish around him and felt a little guilty, but also jealous. She seemed to have warmed up to Tamaki well enough, so why was she so nervous around him?

Before he could go back into the house bitterly, however, Kaoru appeared beside him.

Haruhi rubbed her eyes. Tamaki wasn't lying to her... there really was two of them.

Tamaki smiled triumphantly. "I found her! Honey-sempai wasn't lying when he said he saw somebody here."

"No kidding. Hey, my name's Kaoru." Kaoru smiled and bowed and Haruhi stared at him for a while before bowing herself.

"Nice to meet you," she said quietly. "Haruhi... Fujioka."

It felt so good to say her new name and she saw Tamaki smile out of the corner of her eye. Haruhi felt warmer inside and smiled a little, despite herself.

However, her calming mood was shattered and replaced by a looming anxiety as she heard a familiar, smooth voice from off beside them.

"What are you all doing?"

The twins and Tamaki turned to see Akira standing there. His blue eyes held a dark expression as he looked at each in turn and then turned his gaze to Haruhi, who avoided it, looking at her hands.

"Why do you care?" Hikaru asked rudely. Akira forced a smile.

"I was worried about you; this forest is dangerous, you know."

"That's a load of crap. How come you got so suspicious when Honey-sempai was talking about his exploration yesterday? And why was the gate locked this time around?"

Akira knew Hikaru was trying to corner him, but he straightened up and hardened his resolve, answering confidently, "I only care for your safety. And you can see for yourself that Haruhi-chan lives here."

At her name, Haruhi lifted her head slightly, fearful of what he was going to say.

Akira finished his explanation, "Haruhi probably locked the gate after your friends barged in here yesterday. Haruhi enjoys her privacy, that's why I suggested she live here in the first place."

Haruhi caught Akira's eyes, gauging his expression, and she knew that she had to back him up.

"He's right," she conceded, trying to hide the lie from her voice. "I'm not used to having guests, so I became a little skittish."

One glance at Tamaki and she knew he didn't fully believe her or Akira. She hoped he would say something... at least challenge the ideas that Akira was laying down on the table. To her dismay, he merely smiled and answered, "I'm sorry for intruding; I wasn't aware of the situation."

Tamaki then turned and smiled to Haruhi. The way he was smiling made it seem as if he was smiling apologetically, but Haruhi could see the expression in his eyes and felt elation bubbling up in her. She knew right then that he was on her side.

"Let's leave before we make Haruhi-chan any more uncomfortable. Sorry, again," Kaoru added as he and Hikaru began to walk towards where Akira was at.

"I will go look for your companions. Make your way out to the front path so we may begin our journey back.

"Yessir," Kaoru said as he pulled Tamaki and Hikaru towards the front yard to wait for the rest. After they were gone, Akira's cordial expression melted away as his steely glare was turned on the white-clad girl.

"We will have a talk later, Haruhi-chan," the sickly sweet nature of his voice only fueled Haruhi's fears, and she remained there, frozen, even after Akira had entered the house and shut the back door behind him.

* * *

"I don't believe what he's saying. Did you see how she seized up when he suddenly started to talk? There's something wrong here," Hikaru voiced everyone's thoughts.

"I agree," Tamaki said. "Hopefully, the other three found out some things that might be able to shed more light on the situation."

"How's your leg?" Kaoru asked.

Tamaki looked down at the pristine bandage that Haruhi had applied. In the midst of all that was happening, he had nearly forgot that his leg hurt. Now that it was mentioned again, he began to feel little pinpricks of pain again, but not nearly as bad as before.

"It's alright," Tamaki finally answered as Akira emerged from the front of the house with Kyoya, Honey and Mori. Honey looked sad and nervous, Mori was apathetic, and Kyoya looked slightly annoyed, his hands in his pockets.

"Shall we go now?" Akira asked as they exited out through the fence and began their trek. They had journeyed almost half of the way before Kaoru suddenly spoke up.

"Hey, wasn't that fence locked?"

Akira stopped and looked at him. "What do you mean?"

"I _mean_, you said that Haruhi probably locked the fence because she was nervous of Honey-sempai. But when we left the house, the fence was unlocked. Why?"

"How am I supposed to know?" Akira asked, his tone slightly derisive, as if he was on the brink of rolling his eyes in annoyance. "I assume she unlocked it sometime after you arrived. She might not be very welcoming, but she isn't heartless. Whatever tricks you pulled to get inside the fence to begin with obviously caused injury," he gestured to Tamaki's leg, "so she could have unlocked it to make it easier for you to depart."

"You act as if you know every single thing she might do. That's a pretty lengthy explanation on behalf of some mysterious girl in the forest. How do you even know her?"

Akira sighed. "I always assumed that she was always there. When I was little, visiting my father here on the island, I found the cottage in the woods and met her. I've known her for a very long time, so I'm able to know what she would do in a certain situation, see?"

Hikaru frowned skeptically. "So you have no idea how she got here?"

"No. Every time I asked my father about it, he would avoid the question, and I knew how stupid it was to pry any further, so I didn't bring it up much."

Akira frowned slightly, as if the explanation brought about memories that he didn't care to remember.

Kyoya narrowed his eyes, looking at Akira's hands. The only sign of nervousness he was showing were his fingers moving in a sort of erratic fashion. He smiled slightly; only Kaoru noticed before the smile disappeared and Kyoya looked forward again. Kaoru looked at Akira's hand and realized the same exact thing Kyoya had. He started to think.

"Well, we're here," Akira said. The group had traveled the rest of the way in silence. Akira entered the mansion and immediately disappeared up to his room.

"Oh ho ho, come back from a walk with the young master, yes?" Aiko said from where she was cleaning the frame of a portrait. "How did it go?"

"I felt like I was going to be scolded like a child the whole time," Hikaru grumbled, eliciting a loud laugh from the maid, Misa, who was on the other side of the room.

"Well, _maybe_ if you weren't doing something you weren't supposed to be doing, then you wouldn't feel that way!"

She walked over until she was face-to-face with Hikaru.

"So what were you doing, hmmmm?" she inquired with an evil grin. Even the presence of a feather duster in her hand did not take away from the menacing aura she was emitting.

"Nothing!" Hikaru replied defensively. "Don't you have dishes to wash, or something?"

Misa pursed her lips in anger. "Don't you have a checkbook to balance out, or something?!" she almost screeched back at him before rushing to the kitchen in a fit of rage.

Hikaru just stood there, dumbfounded for the umpteenth time that day. "Why is it that I say something, and she automatically takes some offense to it? What have I done to her?"

"O ho ho ho," Aiko smiled, putting a well-aged hand on Hikaru's shoulder. "Don't take it the wrong way, Hitachiin-sama, Misa-chan has always been a lit explosive. There's nothing you can do about it."

Hikaru edged away from the kindly servant, still not convinced. "I... guess so."

Tamaki smiled. "Well, that's alright! We should go and wash up!" he declared, trying to hint to the others that they needed to go and share information.

The rest of the Host Club followed him to Tamaki's room, sitting down and resting their feet.

"Who is Haruhi?" Mori asked, right off the bat, looking at Tamaki.

"Oh, yes! You wouldn't have known, would you? Well, Honey-sempai was right after all! There is a girl living here, and although she might not be a fairy, or a vengeful spirit, she does exist and live in that house. Apparently, according to Akira-san, she has been there for a while. She bandaged my leg all up, see?" Tamaki stretched out his leg happily.

"Hmm... so Akira-san wanted us to stay on the trail so we wouldn't get to the house and see Haruhi?" Honey asked. "Why would he do that?"

"He probably kidnapped her. Stole her from her family so she could live here," Hikaru said, not hiding the malice he held towards the boy.

"For what purpose, though?" Kaoru asked his twin. "Just to keep her in a house? It doesn't look like she's a servant."

"Besides," Tamaki added, "When he was talking about his father... did you see his face? I don't know how to explain it, but I am sure that that was sincere. He wasn't lying about that. But he was lying about Haruhi locking and unlocking the fence, though. Haruhi was sleeping when I saw her. There wouldn't be much time for her to do anything with the fence."

"There's something up, though," Kaoru said. "Remember, Hikaru, when we were in that room next to the library? We found an opal ring that looks like the one Akira has on his left hand. I checked earlier, and he still has it on."

"He could have gotten it back when he went to look for the rest of us," Hikaru pointed out.

"But that proves he was there," Tamaki said. "If it really was his ring."

"It wasn't," Kyoya interjected, that little smile on his face again. He pushed up his glasses with his right hand.

"How do you know?" asked Hikaru.

Kyoya pulled his left hand out of his pocket, finally, and opened it. In his palm lay the small silver ring.

"Although now it can't be proven that Akira went to the house last night like you wanted, Hikaru," Kyoya said, "It provides more evidence to create the reason of why the girl is there in the first place. Since this ring is on the third finger of his left hand, then that suggests-"

"Marriage?!" Hikaru finished. "That's insane! He's no older than us!"

"But it does make sense, with what we have, anyway," Kaoru conceded. "It's not a certainty, though, right?"

"It's a crazy idea! Why would she live in an entirely different house if they were married?"

"Hmmm, maybe they're fighting?" Honey asked.

"Akira gave no indication that they were married when he talked about her, though. Even if they were fighting, they're still _not _fighting most of the time, right? So why wouldn't he never mention it?" Hikaru argued.

"I don't know," Honey responded.

"Well, there's no use thinking about it now. I'm starving!" Kaoru said. "Let's go get some food!"

"Yeah!" Honey said as they all filed out into the hallway, Tamaki bringing up the rear.

He was pondering everything that had just been talking about. Hikaru had said that the marriage idea was ridiculous, but Tamaki wasn't so sure. He thought back to what Haruhi had said about her name:

"_Aye...I do have a last name, but it's not my own. It doesn't describe me."_

There was that information, and along with the bruise on her cheek...

"Oh, my god," Tamaki whispered.

* * *

AN: Aww... sad :(


	5. Chapter 5

"So, I understand that you all enjoyed yourselves outside today," Yuzuru said at dinner that night. The host club exchanged glances with each other, not knowing what Akira had told them.

"I think it's nice that you are all getting some fresh air," Yuzuru continued with a smile, and the host club let out a collective sigh of relief. "Just be careful, didn't Aoi say that it is very dangerous out there if you take a wrong step?"

"He certainly did," said Akira, with a smug look in his blue eyes. "In fact, I think the risks might be too great... surely you all wouldn't mind if you confined your outside time within the rose garden, yes?"

Hikaru glared, knowing exactly what Akira was doing. Kaoru put a hand on his forearm, silently warning him not to say anything rash. Hikaru sighed and complied, "Yeah... it would be safer..."

Akira smiled. "I would absolutely hate it if any of my guests got injured on my island." His eyes fell on Tamaki, whose injury was hidden as best it could from Yuzuru for fear that they would not be able to leave the mansion at all. "So, how about this. Whenever you all want to go outside, Satoshi will accompany you. He's mute, so he won't bother you, and he knows the garden well enough to warn you if you are about to venture anywhere dangerous."

Tamaki narrowed his eyes slightly. _So, in other words, Satoshi knows the garden well enough to know where we might escape from our figurative cage_. Instead of voicing his thoughts, he smiled and agreed. "That sounds like a great idea!"

Akira clapped his hands. "Very well, I will make those precautions a reality, then."

After this, Akira and Yuzuru engaged in a conversation with each other, and the host club were able to talk to each other quietly.

"That bastard, he's trying to keep us from going into the forest," Hikaru fumed. Kyoya sighed.

"He did warn us, after all. And it seems as if some of us has seen something we shouldn't have seen. Akira-san has his rights to hide whatever he wants from us. We shouldn't barge into his home and root up all of his secrets," he said.

Hikaru glared at Kyoya, "So, what, you're siding with him?"

Kyoya smiled. "I never said that. I only said what we _should_ have done. However, we have discovered his secret, and now I think the thing to do is uproot as much of it as we can. The damage has already been started, we might as well finish it."

The others agreed, save for Tamaki, who was taking the host club's empty plates and taking them into the kitchen. He poked his head inside the ornate kitchen, seeing the elderly woman he wanted to talk to.

"Aiko-san?" Tamaki asked as he came up behind her and put the dishes in the sink.

Aiko smiled when she saw him and helped him. "Oh, Tamaki-sama, you do not need to do this!:

"Oh, that's alright. I wanted to talk to you about something."

"Well, of course, my boy, what is it?"

Tamaki steeled himself and took a deep breath. "What do you know about the girl in the forest?"

Aiko's eyes widened and she took a step back, falling into one of the kitchen chairs. "H...how do you know about her?" she whispered.

Tamaki felt bad about giving her such a shock, but the ball was already rolling, so he had to finish. He moved a chair over to sit across from Aiko, his violet eyes serious.

"So, you do know her."

Aiko sighed. "Aye, I do. Haruhi... Tsukimori."

Tamaki's eyes widened. "She... she is related to Akira?" He thought about everything he had learned so far. The bruise on her cheek, her ominous statement, the exact same ring that Akira wore... on the ring finger of his left hand...

"She's his wife," Aiko said before he could say it. "The poor thing..."

"She didn't want to be his wife?"

"Of course not. Akira's possessive, pressuring, and under that kind facade, he is not the best type of person. She was forced to become his wife."

Tamaki's eyes showed pity. "How?"

Aiko sighed. "It all began when Akira was about ten years old..."

* * *

"_His father had recently come back from a business trip on the mainland. He would always bring back souvenirs and gifts for his son, but this time the gift was a lot more substantial..." _

Akira looked at her. The girl, who was about his age, maybe younger, was staring back at him fearlessly with huge brown eyes. Her hair reached down to her waist, and it was slightly disheveled. Out of the corner of his eye, he could clearly see Aiko's shock.

"Father," Akira said. "What is this?"

Katsu Tsukimori smiled. "I found her on the streets of outlying Tokyo... I figured you might want a friend your age to play with, considering you are homeschooled."

Akira looked at the girl, no expression adorning his face. He stepped forward and looked down at her. "What's your name?"

The girl shifted her feet uncomfortably at the proximity of the other boy and timidly answered, "Haruhi."

"Just Haruhi?"

"Yes," she nodded, though Akira could see the sadness in her eyes as she looked down. He decided not to question on it further, beckoning Aiko over.

"Get her presentable, and put her in one of the guest rooms. I expect you to go shopping for her, and she will be in the dining hall at dinner-time promptly to dine with my father and I, or she will not eat at all. Understand?"

Aiko nodded and took Haruhi's hand, leading her to a washroom. The girl was timid, despite her fearless composure, and Aiko tried to convey her friendliness to the girl using her body language. Haruhi, instead of noticing, decided to amuse herself by matching her footsteps with Aiko's.

After she was washed and dressed (one of the resident maids had old clothes that fit her), Aiko led her to the guestroom where she would be staying. Aiko set Haruhi down on the bed, and settled herself behind her to brush out her long, clean brown hair.

"What did you feel when Katsu-sama took you from the streets?" Aiko asked her.

Haruhi didn't answer for a long time, and Aiko was about to ask a different question before she finally answered, "I don't know."

Aiko frowned. "Well, I'm sorry if the young master seems cold to you now... I'm sure you two will be great friends!"

Haruhi didn't respond, staring at the wall as Aiko brushed her hair.

* * *

"Over time, the two began to warm up to each other, and I was so happy when I saw the young master and Haruhi-chan playing outside in the garden together. However, it seemed as though their friendship was a bit forced. I would brush Haruhi-chan's hair every day, and I began noticing marks and bruises on her neck and arms. I used to think she maybe tripped or hit against something while she was playing, but as time wore on, she was more wary of Akira-sama, often opting to read in her room instead of playing with him."

Tamaki frowned. "What did his father think about it?"

"Katsu-sama meant well, bless his heart, but he was not very perceptive. In fact, most of the time he was gone, so he wasn't aware of what was going on around him. He couldn't recognize Haruhi's little signs of fear whenever Akira-sama was in the room, much less the injuries appearing on her regularly."

"When did they get married? And why is she in that house now?"

Aiko sighed, obviously not wanting to tell a painful story.

"Well, Katsu-sama died a year and a half ago, establishing Akira-sama as the head of the Tsukimori family. Shortly after Katsu-sama's funeral, he used the very same chapel to betroth Haruhi-chan. At that time, I was sure of the abuse she suffered in his presence, and the atmosphere at the wedding was tense enough to be cut with a spoon.

"After the marriage, Haruhi was allowed to sleep in the same room as Akira-sama, and she was allowed to order the servants around and such... however, Haruhi-chan stayed in her guest room, and only conversed with the servants, avoiding Akira-sama at all costs. The only time she went to him is when he ordered it... and she always came out with more bruises than when she went in."

Aiko shuddered for a moment, taking a deep breath, not meeting Tamaki's eyes. "I'm sorry... it's hard to realize that I should have said something to the Master before his death... I feel so guilty about letting things get this bad..."

Tamaki reached forward and comfortingly touched her shoulder. "It's okay, Aiko-san, you don't have to continue..."

"No, no! I will... for her sake." Aiko smiled at him. "Because of Haruhi-chan's evasiveness, Akira-san finally began to get paranoid that she would run away. I remember that he used to fume to me about it, asking me why she kept running off when she saw him... of course, I knew the answer, but I didn't dare say anything... that's another one of my regrets.

"Eventually, Akira-sama became so paranoid that he decided to lock her up in her guest room. However, that made him look bad to the new servants who would come in, so he eventually shut her up in the house on the other side of the island. There's a secret tunnel, see, to get there that Akira-sama uses, and he could use that to get to her without having to walk through the forest. Eventually, he stopped mentioning Haruhi-chan to his customers, and she became naught but a mystery."

Tamaki frowned. "Why would he just make people forget her?"

"If they knew she was living separate from him, they would ask questions, and eventually she might have told them about his rather abusive nature."

Tamaki took this in and then leaned forward. "Aiko-san, this is very important. Where is the tunnel?"

Aiko looked panicked, clearly showing that she didn't want to answer this question. However, she saw that Tamaki truly was concerned for Haruhi's safety, so she eventually gave up trying to hide it.

"Tamaki-sama... if you truly want to help Haruhi, do it quickly. Next week, Akira-sama is having a fence built around his property, so you cannot get to her by forest unless you take a boat and go around the island. Also next week, he is having the chapel torn down. He's doing this because he is at his last straw with Haruhi-chan. With you new arrivals discovering her... he is more sure than ever that she is planning an escape. He's shutting off all ways to get to her... and all ways for her to come here. She can't just jump off a cliff and swim around to this side of the island... by cutting off all ways to get to her, he is implicitly threatening to shut himself off from her... leaving her to die there."

Tamaki's eyes widened, and he kissed Aiko on the cheeks. "Thanks, Aiko-san. So... the entrance to the tunnel... is in the chapel."


End file.
